Grace Episcopal Church

1213 6^th Street

Architecture:

Style: Gothic Revival

Description: This structure is primarily T-shaped. The foundation is Lake Erie limestone. The superstructure is blue stone from the Point Aux Barques quarries, and accented in buff amherst stone. The roofline is front gabled, and protected by a gray slate roof. On the northeast corner is a massive square tower, fourteen feet wide and sixty four feet high. The transepts on north and south side of the church are gabled. On the southeast and northwest corners are one-story round bays with conical tower roofs. Additions include the Holy Innocents Chapel on the rear, built similar to the main structure, and the front gabled Goulden Memorial Chapel on the south side.

Significant Period:

Construction Date: 1889 to 1891

Architect/Builder: Phillip Floeter & Co., Bay City

Context: In 1838, Rev. Charles Reighly began serving as the Episcopal army chaplain at Fort Gratiot. He was the first priest for the Grace Episcopal congregation in town, which was organized in 1840. In 1841, a wood frame church was built at the corner of Huron and Butler (Grand River) Streets. In 1854 a large wood frame church was built on the corner of Wall and Sixth Streets. The third, existing stone church was begun in 1889 and completed in 1891. The attached James Goulden Memorial Chapel, George Harvey architect, was begun in 1909 and completed in 1911. The attached Chapel of Holy Innocents, a children’s chapel, was built in 1977. The Grace Episcopal Church was added to the State Register of Historic Sites in 1991.